Are these blood results "fine"?

[CreatingHavoc]

Because I don't feel particularly fine :/
I suspect my main problem is low iron but I have no idea about the rest of the results.
GP is adamant that the results are all fine and within range.

Your ferritin is on the low end of normal. You could try and raise your iron level to see if you improve?

Your ferritin is far from ideal. Needs to be over 30 as a minimum ideally over 100. Take some iron supplements. Heme iron more expensive but much better absorbed with fewer side effects.

You're not anaemic and your levels are normal, but low normal.
Feroglobin tablets with vitamin B12 may be the perfect solution for you.
I'd have a chat with the local pharmacist.
Everything else looks great!

Ferritin is low side of normal. Keep an eye on it and try and get some ironinyou.

My ferritin is down to 8 and I feel awful (dizzy, shakes, itching) and am now waiting for an iron infusion. I have many health problems though and this is a recurring thing.

In an ideal world your GP would know the difference between 'in range' and 'optimal'.

Your thyroid results need keeping an eye on. Maybe re-test in six months or so. TSH looks good, but FT4 is in the bottom half of the range which is not so good and the fact that the two results are therefore out of kilter is a concern.

Ferritin however is the biggie. I will add the link to the NHS Clinical Knowledge Summary for iron deficiency anaemia. The important bit for you is the bit that says "In all people, a serum ferritin level of less than 30 micrograms/L confirms the diagnosis of iron deficiency." It's worrying that your GP does not appear to know this either. Your ferritin really needs to be about mid-range.

cks.nice.org.uk/topics/anaemia-iron-deficiency/

Thanks everyone. I'm taking feroglobin liquid but my gp says they don't prescribe iron tablets unless it's under 11. It's been under 11 before and i had tablets for a while but my digestive system is hit hard by them and makes it somewhat unbearable to take them. @welshpolarbear are you getting an infusion privately or on the NHS? I'm starting to think it's the only way I'm going to get any better. I can't afford to go private though unfortunately.

@DeedIDo thank you. I know absolutely nothing about thyroid levels. Do you know if my results hint at a possible underactive thyroid? It's something I've wondered about previously.

@CreatingHavoc Through the NHS. Usually only when it gets down to this level though, despite it being obvious it's the way it's going when I get to 11. Very frustrating.

I've just tried to get an appointment about it now but they'll only let me see the nurse, despite having a horrendous symptoms.

@CreatingHavoc your thyroid results just look a bit 'off' to me. With a TSH of 0.88, I would have expected, in a healthy person, that FT4 would be in the top 25% of the reference range and yours is below 50%. That suggests that your levels of active hormone (FT3) will be correspondingly low.

Only full thyroid testing will tell you the whole story. The lovely people at ThyroidUK can tell you how to organise that privately, because the NHS very rarely does it.

You could do with getting B12 and folate tested as well, plus a full iron panel, as your haemoglobin is low in range. With a bit of pressure, your GP may do these for you.

Any of these things can make you feel awful, it's just a matter of figuring out which is the real villain of the piece.

@welshpolarbear mine went down to about 9 and nothing was ever mentioned of an infusion :( I've managed to get it up to 15 with the horrendous iron tablets and now otc supplements but it's not getting much better than that. I think it's dropped again as I had a stomach bug after these bloods were done that meant I couldn't eat properly for over a week.

@DeedIDo thanks for the info. I'll look in to it and see if I can push gp to do anything else. I've ended up with a referral for a 24hr heart monitor because I have palpitations all the time but the gp said something on the blood results meant that my b12 was fine? I've no idea what though.

I see what he's saying (it's the MCV and the other two with it) but of course nothing says "your B12 is fine like a B12 test result close to the top of the range. Ditto folate.

PS one of the signs of low ferritin is palpitations. Go figure, as they say.

@DeedIDo thanks for the info, much appreciate. I will push for more tests.

I buy ferrous fumerate online as it’s the same strength the GP generally prescribe. The GP took it off my repeat prescription when my ferritin got to 15 because it was now “normal”

The endocrinologist I see told me to continue taking it because I can barely get off the sofa & my hair is falling out.

@StrikeandRobin my hair is incredibly thin too and I look like a zombie without makeup. It's so frustrating how gp's don't know/care enough to give us the proper treatment :(

It is, I wish I could afford an iron transfusion. The Endo scrolled back through my ferritin results and 3 years ago it was up at 80. He actually asked if I’d had an infusion because every other result -twice a year for years!- is a maximum of 23. I’m thinking lab error because I certainly didn’t feel as if it was 80!

I hope you get some extra tests/treatment & feel better soon.

My ferretin and haemoglobin have been very similar to yours for years and I’ve felt awful. You’re iron deficient, bordering on anaemic. Like your doctor, mine have always seen that they fall in range and I’ve been dismissed.

I recently paid for private bloods as I felt worse than ever and bloods came back as anemic. Supplementing has sorted worst of it, but it’s a long journey back.

Does your gp know that you are taking iron supplements? I know you’re not taking the really strong ones, but it’s worth making sure they know those results are with additional iron. When I told my gp that I was supplementing, he took my results more seriously and upped the iron dosage.

Do explore different ways of taking iron supplements. Iron comes in loads of different forms and some are easier to tolerate than others. I can take ferrous generate 400g every other day in one hit, but can’t take 300g two days in a row. Some people take it with fybrogel - I would check with doc about that as not sure it’s recommended. Some people find haem iron supplements easier to tolerate. You can find all these online - they are not prescription only drugs and are often cheaper than getting a prescription.

I had painful cramps and diarrhoea from several forms of iron - tried iron sulphate, fumerate, bisglycinate and gluconate. I couldn't even tolerate more than one sachet of spatone a day.

The only iron I can take is haem iron (derived from animal products). This has no unpleasant side effects for me, but it is more expensive. I have one at the moment called Simply Heme iron repair, Optifer also do one.